FIU-led Consortium Wins $1.5-M Kellogg Grant;
Funds Will Be Used to Enhance Hispanic Education

University Coalition is One of Only Two in Southeast to Receive Funding

MIAMI, Fla. (April 10, 2001) - A consortium of Miami-Dade county organizations led by Florida International University has won a $1.5-million "ENLACE" grant from the W.K. Kellogg Foundation to enhance educational opportunity for Hispanics, the fastest-growing demographic group in the United States.

The coalition is one of only 13 nationally funded in the intensely competitive grant process and one of only two in the Southeast. A consortium led by the University of South Florida in Tampa is the other.

ENLACE stands for Engaging Latino Communities for Education; it is also a reference to the Spanish word, "enlazar," which means "to weave" or "to link." Launched in 1997, the six-year, $28-million initiative seeks to foster greater educational access and success for Latino students by promoting Hispanic colleges and communities. The initiative seeks to link Hispanic-servicing higher-education institutions, K-12 schools and community organizations in regional partnerships that promote the academic success of Latino students.

"As the nation's top university in the graduation of Hispanic students at the bachelor and master levels, we're tremendously proud to lead the ¡ENLACE Miami! initiative," said FIU President Modesto A. Maidique. "We and our partners hope to realize the maximum possible benefit from this $1.5 million in funding to foster greater opportunity and greater success for Hispanic students in South Florida."

¡ENLACE Miami! was one of more than 100 such consortia that applied nationwide in 1999 for the planning phase of ENLACE funding; the Kellogg Foundation announced 18 awardees in January of the following year, with each receiving planning grants of up to $100,000. Each group was required to create a comprehensive community plan to address needs of Latino students before they get to college - often, as early as the elementary school level.

The 13 consortia now being funded will confront "pipeline" issues, such as failure to finish high school, low academic achievement and expectations, poor performance in courses such as math and science, lack of motivation and positive identity, lack of parental involvement and lack of information about resources and opportunities.

¡ENLACE Miami! has created a highly detailed plan that addresses all of those areas. In addition to FIU, the group includes 10 public elementary, middle and high schools, an adult education center, the Miami-Dade Public School system, eight community and business organizations and WLRN Public Radio and Television (see complete list below).

"Perhaps even more helpful than the funding is the broad, community-wide partnership that the ENLACE program spurred us to create," said Dr. Gustavo Roig, director of the Center for the Advancement of Engineering Pre-College Education at FIU and principal investigator on the ¡ENLACE Miami! effort. "This holistic approach, involving many different organizations and schools, will serve our students well for years to come."

¡ENLACE Miami! Partners
Aspira of Florida, Inc., Banyan Elementary School, CAMACOL (The Latin Chamber of Commerce), Charles R. Hadley Elementary School, Coral Park Elementary School, Everglades Elementary School, E.W.F. Stirrup Elementary School, Florida International University, Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers-Miami Section, the K-Parents Group, Miami Coral Park Senior High School, Miami Coral Park High School Adult and Community Center, Miami-Dade Public Schools, Miami-Dade Public Libraries, the Non-Violence Project, Puello and Associates, Rockway Elementary, Ruben Dario Middle Community School, Seminole Elementary School, Sweetwater Elementary School, The Yeager Foundation, Youth Co-Op Inc., WLRN Public Radio and Television.

Media contacts: Todd Martinez-Padilla Simmons (305) 348-2716 or 2232 David Umansky (202) 357-2627, ext. 106.